This is an op-ed piece from the NY Times written by an anonymous senior aide inside the White House. Never before has anyone written anything about a President like this. This clearly shows the incompetence of the man who is President of the United States of America.

Please share, post, retweet this to everyone you can. We need to show the world that there are millions of us who do not support this man or his policies. We need to either impeach him or indict him. He can and has done real damage to the United States of America. The longer he remains in office, the more damage he will do.

I Am Part of the Resistance Inside the Trump Administration

I work for the president, but like-minded colleagues and I have vowed to thwart parts of his agenda and his worst inclinations.

President Trump is facing a test to his presidency unlike any faced by a modern American leader.

It’s not just that the special counsel looms large. Or that the country is bitterly divided over Mr. Trump’s leadership. Or even that his party might well lose the House to an opposition hellbent on his downfall.

The dilemma — which he does not fully grasp — is that many of the senior officials in his own administration are working diligently from within to frustrate parts of his agenda and his worst inclinations.

I would know. I am one of them.

To be clear, ours is not the popular “resistance” of the left. We want the administration to succeed and think that many of its policies have already made America safer and more prosperous.

But we believe our first duty is to this country, and the president continues to act in a manner that is detrimental to the health of our republic.

That is why many Trump appointees have vowed to do what we can to preserve our democratic institutions while thwarting Mr. Trump’s more misguided impulses until he is out of office.

The root of the problem is the president’s amorality. Anyone who works with him knows he is not moored to any discernible first principles that guide his decision making.

Although he was elected as a Republican, the president shows little affinity for ideals long espoused by conservatives: free minds, free markets and free people. At best, he has invoked these ideals in scripted settings. At worst, he has attacked them outright.

In addition to his mass-marketing of the notion that the press is the “enemy of the people,” President Trump’s impulses are generally anti-trade and anti-democratic.

Don’t get me wrong. There are bright spots that the near-ceaseless negative coverage of the administration fails to capture: effective deregulation, historic tax reform, a more robust military and more.

But these successes have come despite — not because of — the president’s leadership style, which is impetuous, adversarial, petty and ineffective.

From the White House to executive branch departments and agencies, senior officials will privately admit their daily disbelief at the commander in chief’s comments and actions. Most are working to insulate their operations from his whims.

Meetings with him veer off topic and off the rails, he engages in repetitive rants, and his impulsiveness results in half-baked, ill-informed and occasionally reckless decisions that have to be walked back.

“There is literally no telling whether he might change his mind from one minute to the next,” a top official complained to me recently, exasperated by an Oval Office meeting at which the president flip-flopped on a major policy decision he’d made only a week earlier.

The erratic behavior would be more concerning if it weren’t for unsung heroes in and around the White House. Some of his aides have been cast as villains by the media. But in private, they have gone to great lengths to keep bad decisions contained to the West Wing, though they are clearly not always successful.

It may be cold comfort in this chaotic era, but Americans should know that there are adults in the room. We fully recognize what is happening. And we are trying to do what’s right even when Donald Trump won’t.

The result is a two-track presidency.

Take foreign policy: In public and in private, President Trump shows a preference for autocrats and dictators, such as President Vladimir Putin of Russia and North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, and displays little genuine appreciation for the ties that bind us to allied, like-minded nations.

Astute observers have noted, though, that the rest of the administration is operating on another track, one where countries like Russia are called out for meddling and punished accordingly, and where allies around the world are engaged as peers rather than ridiculed as rivals.

On Russia, for instance, the president was reluctant to expel so many of Mr. Putin’s spies as punishment for the poisoning of a former Russian spy in Britain. He complained for weeks about senior staff members letting him get boxed into further confrontation with Russia, and he expressed frustration that the United States continued to impose sanctions on the country for its malign behavior. But his national security team knew better — such actions had to be taken, to hold Moscow accountable.

This isn’t the work of the so-called deep state. It’s the work of the steady state.

Given the instability many witnessed, there were early whispers within the cabinet of invoking the 25th Amendment, which would start a complex process for removing the president. But no one wanted to precipitate a constitutional crisis. So we will do what we can to steer the administration in the right direction until — one way or another — it’s over.

The bigger concern is not what Mr. Trump has done to the presidency but rather what we as a nation have allowed him to do to us. We have sunk low with him and allowed our discourse to be stripped of civility.

Senator John McCain put it best in his farewell letter. All Americans should heed his words and break free of the tribalism trap, with the high aim of uniting through our shared values and love of this great nation.

We may no longer have Senator McCain. But we will always have his example — a lodestar for restoring honor to public life and our national dialogue. Mr. Trump may fear such honorable men, but we should revere them.

There is a quiet resistance within the administration of people choosing to put country first. But the real difference will be made by everyday citizens rising above politics, reaching across the aisle and resolving to shed the labels in favor of a single one: Americans.

There is an epidemic sweeping America. It is an epidemic of stupidity, naivete and short-sightedness. It has infected between 25 to 40 percent of the American people. Higher numbers can be found in some sub-groups which seem particularly vulnerable. I call this disease “Moronitus.” You may well ask where I get my numbers from. The bottom figure for this disease (25%) is the number of people who voted for Trump. The top figure is the number of Americans who in the last Pew Poll gave Trump a high approval rating. I mention some sub-groups have even more Morons. This would include the Republican Party with 73% of its members approving of Trump and certainly groups like the KKK, neo-Nazis, neo-Confederates and other Alt-Right groups which no doubt are almost 100 percent infected by Moronitus.

You may think you know what a moron is, but I doubt it. The conventional definition of a Moron has to do with intelligence. This is wrong. Intelligence is a passé and incorrect means of identifying someone suffering from Moronitus. IQ has nothing to do with being a moron. Let me clarify this.

Morons can be highly intelligent. Morons can be rich. Morons can be good people who love their family and give money to charities. Morons can be lawyers, teachers, judges, blue collar or white-collar workers. Morons can hold high and low positions in our societies. Morons can be greedy, or they can be generous. What then is a Moron?

Well, first, a Moron is a person suffering from Moronitus. Of course, that is a circular definition. More definitively, a moron is a person who believes something without thinking. The three major symptoms of Moronitus are:

A belief in something without any substantive facts or evidence.

A belief in something simply because someone told you it was true.

An unwillingness to change a belief when confronted by overwhelming facts or data.

Those who suffer from the disease of Moronitus tend to fall into seven major categories. There are several other categories, but a clear majority of Morons can be found in the seven categories I am going to describe. Many of the people suffering from Moronitus will be found in more than one category. Some of the other categories I might mention that have many Morons would include:

Those who believe that guns deter crime

Those who believe that throwing money at social problems will improve things

Those who believe that the more military/police we have the safer we will be

Those who believe that all criminals or people who break the law should be thrown in jail

Those who believe that we can stop people from taking drugs

The categories above would be interesting to explore, but I want to stick to the seven major categories of Morons. In the remainder of this blog, we will look in more depth at each of the seven categories of Morons or should I say those who suffer from Moronitus.

(A Disclaimer, if you find yourself in one of these categories and are offended — TOUGH SHIT. The truth may just set you free. If not, I don’t give a fuck. If you are my mother, father, sister, brother, aunt, uncle or best friend, a Moron is a Moron.)

The good news is you don’t have to suffer from Moronitus. It can be overcome. However, it will require you to exercise your brain. If you are like so many lazy Americans who can’t get off the couch to get some exercise, exercising your brain might prove to be a very difficult task. Help can be found to those who really want to overcome the disease.

Here then, are the Seven Categories of Morons:

Racist:

If you believe that some people because of color or ethnicity are either superior or inferior to others, you are a Moron. If you think that people who look like you are entitled to more privileges than others, you are a Moron. If you think, that the only thing needed to overcome racism is to forget the past and move on, you are a Moron.

Racism is not a disease. It is an action of a mind that is warped by Moronitus. A group of people who either believe all the negative things they read about others or who simply accept malicious intolerance that benefits their tribe at the expense of other tribes. Racism looks at the world through the opposite of the proverbial “rose colored” glasses. Racists see everything different than they are as somehow threatening their existence. The racist wants those who are different than they are to be isolated and destroyed.

Religious Zealot:

If you believe that your GOD is the only God, you are a Moron. If you think that those who don’t believe in your GOD will be smitten and go to hell, you are a Moron. If you think that practicing your religion makes you superior to other people, you are a moron.

God save us from the “True Believers” (To use the phrase from Eric Hoffer) because they are willing to destroy everyone and everything in the name of their beliefs. A True Believer justifies their intolerance and bigotry by the belief that their GOD would want to destroy the “unbelievers.” A religious zealot or True Believer can belong to any religion. Catholics, Protestants, Muslims, Jews, Hindus can all be religious zealots. Look at the world around you and you can see the mayhem caused by these religious zealots. All in the name of promoting “THEIR GOD.”

Anti-Environmentalist or Climate Denier:

If you think that short-term economic gains are more important than long-term environmental planning, you are a Moron. If you think that humans are not wreaking havoc on the environment with a result of global climatic change, you are a Moron. If your think that Capitalism will do what’s best for the world if left unregulated, you are a Moron.

I could present all manner of scientific data in the hope of convincing a Moron that climate change and global warming are real and are impacts caused by human mismanagement. However, if you are a Moron it would not have one iota of impact on your belief system. Facts, science, evidence and data have absolutely no impact on the thinking of a Moron. Immediate benefits, opportunism, greed, personal advantage and short-term thinking are the only factors that matter to a Moron.

Sexist:

If you think that men are superior to women, you are a Moron. If you think that women exist for the purpose of taking care of and pleasing men, you are a Moron. If you think that women are too emotional and cannot make good decisions, you are a Moron.

America is not the first, last or only nation to be infected by sexism. However, to this date, America has not had a woman president. According to the World Economic Forum (WEF), which, as part of its annual Global Gender Gap Report (2017), ranked almost 150 countries on gender equality, the USA ranked 49th out of 144 countries in terms of gender equality.

We have too many Morons in this country who think women have come far enough or even who feel that women have gone too far. How many people have rejected the right of women to marry other women or who make jokes about women in non-traditional positions? The #MeToo Movement has shown the low regard that many men in positions of power have towards women. Male icons are falling faster than the one can count as women keep coming forward with accusations of abuse and sexual harassment by men in power. This includes men in high positions in politics, high positions in religious organizations and high positions in corporations. The adage that “power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely” would certainly seem to apply to the use of power to take advantage of women, children and other men.

Trickle Down Economist:

If you think that poor people are poor because of bad choices, you are a Moron. If you think that the best way to help the poor is by helping the rich, you are a Moron. If you think that a society is better with no rules or regulations to manage income inequality, you are a Moron.

The famous historian and philosopher Henry David Thoreau said that “That government is best which governs least.” Too many so called “free market supporters” think that this means “No government rules or regulations are needed.” They seem to conveniently or ignorantly overlook the last word in Thoreau’s quote which is “least.” Least does not men “none” or not at all.

Adam Smith, known to most students of economics as the Father of Free Market Economics or the invisible hand of the market place (Laissez Faire Theory is beloved by conservatives and those who support the idea of little or no government interference in the market place. However, a reading of his most important work (The Wealth of Nations) would show that Smith was far from adverse to the role of government in the market. The following is a list of government activities which Smith noted in his book as appropriate for government. Keep in mind that when Smith wrote his book, society and the world was a much simpler place than it is now. One can only wonder how long Smith’s list would be today.

Here is a list of appropriate Government activities taken from Smith’s book “The Wealth of Nations”:

The Navigation Acts, blessed by Smith under the assertion that ‘defense, however, is of much more importance than opulence’ (WN464);

Sterling marks on plate and stamps on linen and woolen cloth (WN138–9);

Enforcement of contracts by a system of justice (WN720);

Wages to be paid in money, not goods;

Regulations of paper money in banking (WN437);

Obligations to build party walls to prevent the spread of fire (WN324);

Rights of farmers to send farm produce to the best market (except ‘only in the most urgent necessity’) (WN539);

‘Premiums and other encouragements to advance the linen and woolen industries’ (TMS185);

‘Police’, or preservation of the ‘cleanliness of roads, streets, and to prevent the bad effects of corruption and putrefying substances’;

Ensuring the ‘cheapness or plenty [of provisions]’ (LJ6; 331);

Patrols by town guards and fire fighters to watch for hazardous accidents (LJ331–2);

Erecting and maintaining certain public works and public institutions intended to facilitate commerce (roads, bridges, canals and harbors) (WN723);

Coinage and the mint (WN478; 1724);

Post office (WN724);

Regulation of institutions, such as company structures (joint- stock companies, co-partners, regulated companies and so on) (WN731–58);

Temporary monopolies, including copyright and patents, of fixed duration (WN754);

“Smith’s ideas are still not faithfully represented in modern economics….I am skeptical of classical economists claiming to be his ‘intellectual heirs.’ Even today the ‘neo-classical’ perpetuate the myth of the ‘invisible hand’ and ascribe it to the market. All markets work using visible prices (and cannot work without them!). What then is the role of an invisible hand? That even Nobel Prize winners repeat the canard of the ‘invisible hand’ is disappointing, to say the least. The Austrian School likewise promotes the myth of the ‘’invisible hand’ which is also disappointing.” — Grasping Reality with Both Hands.

The Patriot:

If you think that Americans are somehow superior to other people are that other nations are inferior to the United States, you are a Moron. If you think that the United States has a right to coerce, interfere with or preach our way of living to other nations, you are a Moron. If you think that God prefers America to other nations, you are a Moron.

It has been said that “Patriotism is the Last Refuge of a Scoundrel” (Samuel Johnson). When all thinking fails whether in diplomacy or politics, fall back upon a belief that your country is exceptional or superior to other countries. You can use this belief as a justification for war, preemptive attacks, embargos, tariffs or undermining the duly elected government of another nation.

Patriotic Zealots have a great deal in common with Religious Zealots. In the name of their country rather than their God, they believe that they have the right to impose their will and ideas on other people. My Country is synonymous with MY GOD. God Bless America and screw the other countries of the world. God prays for victory for America and defeat for its enemies. We are justified in whatever we do in the world because we are superior. In the name of patriotism, religious leaders line up to say victory prayers for Americans because we are the “Chosen People.”

Trumpists:

If you voted for Trump and still support him, you are a Moron. If you think that because Trump is rich that he is smarter than other people, you are a Moron. If you think that Trump cares about the poor, lower classes or common person, you are a Moron.

Trump has according to the Southern Poverty Law Center (America the Trumped) been able to achieve the following in only 1 ½ years of holding office:

Promoted White Nationalism

Slashed Civil Rights Enforcement

Created a Deportation Machine

Banned Muslims

Attacked Voting Rights

Shredded LGBT Protections

Encouraged Police Abuses

Revived Debtor’s Prisons

Undermined Public Education

Eroded the Rights of Students with Disabilities

I would add to this list:

Sanctioned Sexism towards Women

Dismantled Environmental Protections

Created Greater Income Inequality

Placed the USA in a Position of Lower Esteem with other Nations

There are those supporters who believe that Trump has managed to improve the economy (A myth fostered by those with little or no economic education) and those who believe that Trump has helped restore America’s Stature with the rest of the world, another myth. In fact, the economic recovery started under President Obama and Trump has merely jumped on its tail end. As for American stature with the rest of the world, we now have the lowest approval rating in recent American history.

“The survey of opinion in 134 countries showed a record collapse in approval for the US role in the world, from 48% under Obama to 30% after one year of Donald Trump – the lowest level Gallup has recorded since beginning its global leadership poll over a decade ago.”

Trump is an unrepentant liar. The sad part is that his Moronic Supporters believe everything he says. Anything he does is viewed by his supporters as being great and wonderful. Most of his supporters are about as simplistic in their thinking as Trump is in his. No amount of evidence or facts will change the mind of a Trump supporter. They are the Penultimate Morons. There has never been a category of Morons in history who are more simplistic and myopic in their thinking than a Trump Supporter.

Well, there you have it. My Seven Categories of Morons. I sincerely hope that you did not fall into one of my categories above. But if you did, there is still hope. You can overcome the Disease of Moronitus by doing the following:

Question everything

Look for evidence to confirm or disconfirm your opinions

Look for opposing viewpoints

Question authorities

Read

I fear that I may be preaching to the choir here. If so, please feel free to share this blog with anyone you know who may be suffering from Moronitus. Good Luck.

Time for Questions:

Why should we challenge our thinking? What are the limitations of facts and data? How do we know who or even what to believe? How can we change our world for the better? What difference can we make? Can we make a difference?

Life is just beginning.

“We are in danger of destroying ourselves by our greed and stupidity. We cannot remain looking inwards at ourselves on a small and increasingly polluted and overcrowded planet.” — Stephen Hawking

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